musings and inspirations in art, fashion, craft, decor, creative business and creative living by artist Traci Bautista
be inspired...live a beautiful life...

Style reMix is my monthly tutorial project using my FAVE ILoveTo Create products. Today I'm sharing a fun Halloween inspired tutorial to create DIY masks from recycled FedEx envelopes. This is a great project to create with the kiddos.

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I'm visiting my family in Hawaii and spending a lot of quality art-making time with my nieces. We've been painting and art journaling everyday and creating fun Halloween inspired art. My nieces Nugget and Pua {our nicknames for them} are 2 and 4 years old. They are super creative and very independent already, they did all the painting, glittering and decorating themselves. Nugs, the youngest, kept saying "NO! Auntie Boo Boo, I want to do it". So I just provided all the fun supplies and embellishments, giving them pointers and a few painting demonstrations.

STEP ONE| create mask templates on paper by folding it in half and drawing half the mask. Cut apart a recycled FedEx envelope or manila folder and fold it in half. Trace the template onto a envelope, then cut out the mask. Unfold the cut out to reveal your mask shape. I created a butterfly shaped mask and a few other variations.STEP TWO| Place various ILoveTo Create Tulip Soft Fabric paints into a palette and use a Tulip Sponge Pouncer to apply paint onto the mask. I only brought a handful of paint colors with me including the primary colors. I let the girls choose their own colors and talked about mixing colors. I showed them how to create pink by mixing red and white paint. TIP: Teach the kids about color mixing when you paint. I also encourage them to try not to mix ALL the primary colors so they don't paint a "brown" mask. To avoid mixing too many colors, I teach them to wash out their brush by dipping the brush into water and pressing it into a paper towel. I explain how we will use the paper towels for collage in our art journals.

STEP THREE| Tulip SLICK Dimensional Paint and Tulip Fashion Ultra Fine Glitter. I show them how to use dimensional paint and add glitter to the mask. Pua used pink dimensional paint to trace the outline of the mask and added dots with a metallic color. She LOVES anything glitter! She sprinkled each color in small batches onto the mask. Set aside the masks to dry. Tulip Slick paint takes a few hours to dry {especially if it applied in thick lines} and 24 hours to fully cure.

STEP FOUR| CUT holes for eyes into mask. {this should be done by an adult or if your child is older please supervise} Draw the eye shape on the back side and cut it out using scissors or a craft knife. Fold the mask in half then trace the cut hole and cut out the second eye hole.

STEP FIVE| EMBELLISH the mask! Once all the paint is completely dry add feathers, beads and baubles. I took the girls shopping and let them pick out their own goodies and of course they chose all the glittery BLING sequins, crystals and multi-colored feathers. I showed the girls how to use Aleene's Taky Tape Roller to apply the feathers.

TIP: using a tape roller is a lot less messy and instantly glues lightweight items to surfaces. I helped them with the Tape Roller but Sissy Nugget wanted to do it herself again. :) To adhere the heavier items use Aleene's Tacky Glue.

STEP SIX| ADD a tie or holder. Glue chopsticks or a couple of painted skewers to the side of the mask to create a holder. Punch holes into the sides of the mask and attach ribbons to tie the mask around the back of your child's head.

Sissy Nugs with grandma! My mom helped during the evening art making session.

The girls being silly with Grandma! We had a fun couple of days creating our Halloween masks!

a few artful tips...

all of the Tulip paints are made for fabric but I also use them on paper.

experiment using various surface including fabric, recycle a pair of old jeans or tshirt to create a fabric mask

Talk about masks and how they are used in different cultures or theatre

show them pictures of masks...encourage them to draw the masks in their journals

create paper feathers and glue them to the mask

create a Mardi Gras mask during the season

collage paper onto the masks using Collage Pauge, then doodle over the top with pens or dimensional paints

let them explore without interruption or trying to correct or direct them

teach them how to use the materials safely

keep wet paper towels or baby wipes handy to clean up spilled paint

when working with ultra fine glitter, make sure to wash hands thouroughly and remind the kids not to rub their eyes

have the kids wear a painting smock or apron, the fabric paint is permanent

Happy creating...have a safe and fun Halloween! My heartfelt thoughts and prayers go out to those who were devestated
by Hurricane Sandy. I hope those of you who might not be able to
go outside to celebrate Halloween can use this project to keep the kiddos entertained and lift their spirits!

today I continue with my printmaking tutorial series on AUTUMN leaves. I HEART plexiglass for printing and creating beautiful layered collage papers. It's a great way to create interesting and colorful layers on paper and fabrics. The photos above step out my basic process.

drizzle 2-3 paint colors onto the top of plexiglass. I used Tulip Soft Fabric paint. If paint dries to quickly add a few drops of acrylic glazing liquid.

roll the paint out smoothly with a soft rubber brayer

place stencils/masks {I cut the leaf shapes from a recycled FedEx envelope}. Doodle into the paint with skewer or back of paintbrush

place a piece of colored construction paper that will contrast the paint color, rub lightly with your fingers to transfer the paint to paper.

pull up paper to reveal the masked print

remove leaf cardboard shapes. save these to use in future projects. take a photo of your plexiglass for use in digital art

place another piece of paper onto the plexiglass surface to transfer another "ghost" print

add more paint to plexiglass surface and roll out with the soft rubber brayer.

press a handmade leaf stamp into the rolled out paint, then take another piece of paper to pull a print

I've been inspired by my AUTUMN leaves color palettes and beautiful foliage I encounter daily. I spent the past few days experimenting with plexiglass painting {one of my FAVE ways to create monoprints}, creating collage papers and painting on recycle fabric remnants. I created stacks of beautiful painted papers and fabrics. All the fun techniques won't fit into one post, so I've decided to share the colorful process over a few blog posts. First off, I created handmade leaf stamps with self-adhesive craft foam inscribed with a skewer. {a technique in my new book Doodles Unleashed and Redefine the Doodle: inspirations + mark-making online workshop}I used a variety of ILoveTo Create Tulip paints and tools. Squeeze out a few autumn colors on the palette. I used Copper, Metallic Gold, Chocolate Matte, orange and Sunshine yellow. The paints are made for fabric but I use them on paper too.

Use a Tulip Sponge Pouncer to apply the various colors onto the handmade foam stamp. Dab a little of one color then another color. Notice I don't mix the colors before on the palette, this will give you a multicolored print.

Turn painted stamp over onto the surface { I used a piece of recycled craft paper box stuffing from FedEx} and roll over the back with a soft rubber brayer. TIP: Using a brayer reveals a nice solid print. Using your fingers to press the stamp will produce a softer grunge print.

continue to add paint to the stamp and press the stamp onto the surface in different directions to make it look like falling leaves. experiement with different surfaces... I also used white tissue paper as a background.

This stamp was created by cutting the foam into a leaf shape. RECYCLE an old pair of jeans...cut and tear the up into smaller pieces. roll out paint onto the leaf stamp using a soft rubber brayer then turn it over onto a piece of recylced jean fabric.

more stamped layers using Tulip Soft Fabric Paint in metallic copper and linen on blue tissue paper. Begin with printing Linen color then layer stamp randomly over the top using the metallic color.

You can find all these ILoveTo Create products at JoAnn Fabric and Craft stores. stay tuned for more printmaking fun!

if you have a regular blog series, think of ways you can incorporate the holidays. {ie. if you do a fashion blog post series...how about holiday colored clothing or an ugly holiday sweater theme}

create a blog series. In 2009, I created my blog series, 24{holiday} inspirations, my goal was to post 24 days of creative inspiration posts during the month of December, that revolved around topics to celebrate the holidays. This series includes DIY tutorials, color palettes, art journaling prompts, artist profiles and daily life posts all related to the holidays. I have continued the blog series for the past three years and the content has been some of my most popular posts.

think about creative ways to show your audience the behind the scene snapshots of your studio...how you create your products or artwork.

give a sneak peek of upcoming product releases

what types of tutorials can you share with your audience? don't copy what's been done already, share new ideas. If you have an idea, do a quick google search to see if it's been done before. if it has, how can you make yours unique and different?

what are your favorite things to do during the holidays? how can you translate them into stories for your blog?

look at your photographs, what stories do they tell? photographs can always inspire great ideas for blog posts

do you have favorite holiday memories or yummy recipes? tell the stories, share photos of the holiday table or dishes.

ask your audience...take a poll to find out what your audience wants to read more about on your blog.

collaborate with other artists..find ways to work with your favorite bloggers/artist friends. maybe a fun technique blog post, a themed post with photos.

share your favorite holiday decorations.

how can you translate holiday trends/themes into a blog post? Etsy has great merchandising resources that you can use to inspire your blog content.

look at patterns, prints and color palettes. create a holiday post about colors.

share ideas for setting the holiday table and fun party planning ideas

how do you celebrate Halloween? parties...costumes...pet costumes

kids holiday project ideas and tutorials

setting the holiday table and fun party planning ideas

what music do you listen to during the holidays? create a playlist, share your favorite band's music or holiday album

read your blog comments, they might spark more content ideas

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do you have favorite topics to write about during the holidays? share you thoughts in the comments. happy holiday planning...xo~Traci

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join AUTUMN creative business CAMP for additonal access to creative business planning worksheets, pdf workbooks/digital downloads {see photo above} and discussions related to all the blog series posts. There is a LIVE stream webinar Q & A replay included in the content more details & register here

the beautiful shades of Autumn are captured in a collection of fallen leaves. I've gathered these during my walks with Indie. the gorgeous leaves have inspired my color palettes and made their way into my paintings lately. Deep chocolate browns, tan, bright greens, maroon, mustard, aubergine and various shades of rusted copper. I've spent the past few days creating leaf inspired prints which will be revealed in a couple of upcoming tutorial posts. For now enjoy the many beautiful shades of the season!

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>#artJOURNALING daily prompt: take a walk and capture photos of Autumn leaves. write about the season and paint lovely Fall colors in your journal.

Today kicks off my AUTUMN creative business CAMP {ACBC} blog series, for the next couple of months I'll be sharing ideas for planning a successful holiday season and kickstarting your 2013 marketing plans. Let's talk about blog content planning and brainstorming! My blog is a tool to help promote my creative business, share my artwork, personal stories and tutorials. Here's a peek into how I go about planning my blog posts...{above: planning worksheets from my DREAM BIG creative business program}

The one thing I am never short of is ideas. I've tried a number of different ways to plan out my blog posts from making lists, writing out a complete calendar schedule to a two-column approach with ideas on one side and actual blog posts in the second column. Since I'm not an everyday blogger, I found that trying to stick to a schedule was difficult. There are many days when I wake up and decide I want to write about something completely different or have an idea that I can't wait to share. So I needed to devise a plan that would work with my blogging style. I like to have a lot of flexibility with my posts and I've found that creatively planing my content using post-it notes works perfect.

{above} BEFORE: I used to write a list of ideas out with coordinating calendar dates, but I found it hard to stick with this rigid schedule

create calendar - draw lines to create a calendar inside a manila folder. using a folder is a great because you can tuck other planning notes and pages into the folder. write the dates and weekdays into the calendar. add in holidays or special dates. you can decorate the folder with additional doodles or collage. record blog statistics, traffic numbers and notes onto the calendar.

write blog post ideas on post-it notes. use different colors for tutorials or blog series. pin calendar open on the wall for easy access or fold it and carry it if you're on the go.

organize blog planning calendar...place the post-its onto the dates. keep your extra post it notes brainstorm list on the wall. If you decide to write a different post you can easily move around your blog calendar ideas. sometimes I use washi tapes to secure the post-its. when you are finished with the month you can file it away. This is what works for me, it may not be for everyone but I hope it sparks ideas for you!

The AUTUMN creative business CAMP blog series will be delivered a couple times a week through November....stay tuned for more fun holiday planning ideas!

>>>>>>>>>>>>do you have additional ideas or comments about planning your holiday blog calendar? share them in the comments.

Underneath the layers of many of my paintings you'll find letters..hand drawn letters, scribbled words, and prints made from alphabet and number stencils. The stencils are some of my fave mark-making tools. I have a large collection of various letter stencils that I use for backgrounds . They make great masks, patterns, rubbing textures and embellishments in my journals and mixed media paintings. Here are a few ideas to incorporate stencils in your creations...

spray through stencils on fabric or paper to reveal the alphabet.

turn them over
& press excess paint onto page by rolling over with a soft rubber
brayer. this creates a backward print of the letters.

layer alphabet stencils over sequin waste to create letters with circle patterns in them

use the stencils as a mask on grocery bag paper then stitch them into a journal

stitch a used craft paper stencil to the cover of a journal or on a handmade greeting card.

once the initial layer of paint dries, cover the letter stencil print with gesso but allow a little of the letters to show through, then paint a face over the top

layer multiple letter stencils over the surface and spray paint through them to reveal interesting lines & shapes.

trace the letter stencils onto the page and draw a pattern in them

use a paint dauber to apply paint through the stencil

place the alphabet stencil under paper or fabric and rub over the surface with watercolor crayons or oil pastels.

unfold...be
FREE...PLAY...this is the core message of all my workshops. you'll cultivate your creative soul while experimenting with mark-making, color explorations and book-binding. During this 3-day
workshop, you'll build a one-of-a-kind art journal with painted fabrics
and papers wrapped with an embellished fiber spine. Explore printmaking,
color studies, doodling, collage and book making. The art journal is a space
to spill your dreams, hopes, fears and ideas. You'll spend time
creating personal graffiti and embark on a photo excursion journey through the historial downtown district of Danville. Each day is full of guided instruction and two optional evening OPEN studio sessions. Join me for an artful weekend of mixed media PLAY at my studio!

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